Aluminum titanate-containing ceramic bodies have emerged as viable substrates to support catalytically-active components for catalytic converters on automobiles, particularly the severe conditions in diesel filter applications. Among the many pollutants in the exhaust gases filtered in these applications are hydrocarbons and oxygen-containing compounds, the latter including nitrogen oxides (NOx) and carbon monoxide (CO). Aluminum titanate-containing ceramic bodies exhibit high thermal shock resistance, enabling them to endure the wide temperature variations encountered in their application, and they also exhibit other advantageous properties for diesel particulate filter applications, such as high porosity, low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), resistance to ash reaction, and modulus of rupture (MOR) adequate for the intended application.
With engine management schemes becoming more and more sophisticated, and with catalyst compositions ever changing, there exists a need for the ability to vary or tailor the properties of these aluminum titanate-containing ceramic bodies, for example their pore size, porosity, and pore size distribution (i.e., a low d-factor). Moreover, there is a need for a method to make aluminum titanate-containing ceramic bodies having these desirable properties.